Art Safari Tours in 2016

We are delighted that artist Sian Dudley is leading her third Art Safari to the wild Alpujarra region of Andalusia, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  New for 2018, we have added two nights in the vibrant city of Granada.

This is a revitalising creative getaway with Sian.  Clear your head in the pure mountain air, with the option to walk back along marked trails from nearby painting locations, while your art kit is transported for you. We love this location, it is a peaceful haven for nature lovers which feels wonderfully untamed.  

Sketch and paint to birdsong, the air is heavy with the scent of wild herbs.  Our simple and stylish accommodation is in a small white-washed village, with an emphasis on good food – most of the ingredients are grown in our hosts organic Finca.  With sweeping views to the distant Mediterranean Sea, we hope you will be treated to some spectacular sunsets and dazzling starry nights.

After the tranquillity of painting in tiny mountainside hamlets we embrace the buzz of vibrant Granada, the splendour and opulence of the Alhambra Palace and gardens.  We stay in the historic centre of the city, taking sketching walks which will undoubtedly include some tapas stops.

Please note that this Art Safari requires good mobility.

Group airport transfers are to/from Granada Airport (group transfers included).  It is also possible to fly to Malaga or Almeria, we can arrange for individual airport transfers (not included).

ArtSafari Trip 2016

When Darwin took this voyage it shaped his theories of evolution through natural selection.  We will see and sketch many of the species he studied, which survive in wonderful and diverse profusion on the unique Galapagos archipelago.

We arrive in Quito, Ecuador on 2nd May and spend one night relaxing after our flights, before our morning flight to the Galapagos Islands.

We begin our Galapagos adventure with three shore based days on Isla Santa Cruz, staying on the waterfront. We settle into island life and begin sketching with fast ‘blink’ sketches and longer relaxing studies of the bay view, marine life, sea turtles, sea lions, sun-basking iguana and colourful birdlife.

We depart Puerto Ayora for our 8 day cruise around the Islands.  Our floating studio is the 79ft Motor Yacht Coral II, with a capacity for 18 guests in 9 guest cabins with lower beds, air conditioning and private bathrooms.  Three decks offer sunbathing and shaded areas, an observatory, a lounge with panoramic windows and comfy sofas, restaurant and bar and a library.  There’s a Jacuzzi and a diving platform for easy access into the water and tenders.  We will be well looked after by a crew of 10, including our knowledgeable Naturalist guide who will accompany us on all our shore excursions, and the ships cooks who will freshly prepare delicious meals. 

Our Island hopping itinerary is full of variation and wonder, white sandy beaches, volcanos, cliffs, lagoons, mangrove forests, coral reefs, unique wildlife and sea life.  Our sketchbooks will fill with images of sea lions, great blue herons, lava gulls, lava herons, flamingos, sea turtles, Giant tortoises, marine and land iguanas, pelicans, lava lizards, Galápagos hawks and mockingbirds. 

The Coral II crew will find safe areas for swimming and snorkelling there is a fascinating underwater world awaiting discovery.

Join Art Safari to sketch animals with Shelly Perkins at Chester Zoo.  Learn to sketch animals in fast lines, working out shapes, lines, tones and colours – and learn not to be daunted when they move around at this exciting sketching Art Safari workshop.

This is a day of art, fun and observation at the zoo. You will go home with confidence in your animal sketching, ideas and experience on how to tackle moving animals and doubtless with lots of material to work from in the future for finished art works… and maybe it will inspire you to travel to see them in the wild.

The workshop will start at 10:00 with coffee at the Bembe Coffee Shop (right next to the main entrance) and introductions and wildlife drawing techniques before setting off for the day.  Shelly will coach you throughout the day, giving one-to-one instruction as well as demos.

The workshops must be pre-booked through Art Safari. To confirm your place please complete and return the booking form and send your payment of £55 for your tuition (excludes zoo/park entrance).

Price                                      £55 per day

Price includes:                      Art tuition with art tutor Shelly Perkins                                                            

Price excludes:                     Zoo entrance fee, travel, art equipment/materials, lunch

Must be pre-booked on 01394 382235 or info@artsafari.co.uk

We visit Zambia at a cooler time of year. Julia Cassels will be running a full week of painting at Thornicroft Lodge.  This is a wonderful opportunity to study elephants and other animals at leisure on this relaxing residential course in South Luangwa National Park.

These are perfect temperatures: the elephants just glide through the grass like ships on the ocean; big cats stick to the roads; and the pelicans are busy fishing in the lagoons.  We will spend time in the national park and also work up sketches back at our base on the banks of the great Luangwa River. Beware – animals tend to wander through at any time of day. 

South Luangwa is the most impressive of National Parks, with incredible wildlife populations and continually enthralling sightings.

Birding is always excellent here.  Big cats proliferate.

Our activities include day and night game drives,  and a visit to a local village.

Lack of drawing ability is one of the biggest obstacles to sketching from life or creating a good painting. But it’s a skill you can learn. Spend a day learning techniques that will boost your confidence and your powers of observation so that you start seeing the world with an artist’s eye.

Join Claudia Myatt for a one day workshop full of drawing techniques which will dispel the myth that drawing is something you’re born with or not. Claudia is convinced that the language of line, like writing, belongs to us all – it’s just that we’ve never been taught how. Most of the day will be spent in the studio but weather permitting we will also spend time sketching on the veranda or quayside. Techniques we’ll cover include:

– Connecting hand and eye – how to see everything as interconnecting shapes

– Switching off your 3D vision and getting past the interfering brain

– Measured drawing, getting proportions right

– How to cheat at perspective and a good look at the horizon

– Sketching for fun – working fast, working slow

– The importance of making mistakes

These workshops take place in Art Safari’s riverside studio, where there is a wealth of material to be seen from the balcony and around the quayside.  To help you prepare we provide a short list of suggested art materials to bring with you. 

A light lunch and refreshments are provided.

Cost:  £70, including lunch and refreshments

Must be pre-booked on 01394 382235 or info@artsafari.co.uk

(You may also like to join Claudia on Saturday 2 June for her ‘Creating a sketchbook Diary’ workshop – call us for details on 01394 382235)

Using your sketchbook to record your world is an enjoyable and liberating way to paint and draw. It allows you to spend time, connect and appreciate your surroundings. It takes the pressure of the expectation that you have to complete a painting worth framing, it improves your drawing skills and helps you to see the world with an artist’s eye.

Join Claudia Myatt for a one day workshop full of techniques, ideas and encouragement to liven up your sketchbooks and gain confidence. The course will focus on watercolours, pens and pencils, and is suitable for beginners as well as those who’ve got some experience with watercolours but need a bit of a boost.  Most of the day will be spent in the studio but weather permitting we will also spend time sketching on the veranda or quayside. Subjects we’ll cover include:

– Sketching materials – what works in studio doesn’t always work on location. A look at different paper, materials and ways of working.

– Basic watercolour sketching techniques – how to select colours quickly and simplify a scene.

– Overcoming fear of the empty page

– Using words and images together

– The beauty of fragments – when to paint a whole scene and when to focus on a tiny part of it.

– Ways of covering up mistakes and overcoming inhibitions

– Creative doodling, playfulness and mixed media

– Developing your own style

These workshops take place in Art Safari’s riverside studio, where there is a wealth of material to be seen from the balcony and around the quayside.  To help you prepare we provide a short list of suggested art materials to bring with you. 

A light lunch and refreshments are provided.

Cost:  £70, including lunch and refreshments

Must be pre-booked on 01394 382235 or info@artsafari.co.uk

(You may also like to join Claudia on Friday 1 June for her ‘Drawing for the terrified’ workshop – call us for details on 01394 382235)

Join Art Safari to sketch animals with Mary-Anne Bartlett at Edinburgh Zoo.  Learn to sketch animals in fast lines, working out shapes, lines, tones and colours – and learn not to be daunted when they move around at this exciting sketching Art Safari workshop.

This is a day of art, fun and observation at the zoo. You will go home with confidence in your animal sketching, ideas and experience on how to tackle moving animals and doubtless with lots of material to work from in the future for finished art works… and maybe it will inspire you to travel to see them in the wild.

The workshop will start at 10am with coffee at the Penguin Café and introductions, then a couple of the wildlife drawing techniques before setting off for the day.

The workshops must be pre-booked through Art Safari. To confirm your place please complete and return the booking form and send your payment of £55 for your tuition (excludes zoo/park entrance).

Price                                      £55 per day

Price includes:                      Art tuition with art tutor Mary-Anne Bartlett                                                      

Price excludes:                     Zoo entrance fee, travel, art equipment/materials, lunch

Must be pre-booked on 01394 382235 or info@artsafari.co.uk